Bulow Plantation Ruins State Park, Florida

Turning off the Old Kings Highway onto Old Beach Road in Flagler County, Florida, really is like stepping back in time. The dusty, unpaved track seems to shoulder its way between the encroaching trees into what is today Bulow Plantation Ruins State Park.

The road is little changed since the days when wagons used to jostle along it, taking their precious cargos to St. Augustine and, from there, the World beyond.

Old Beach Road

At the end of the track is a beautiful spot beside Bulow Creek, where the Bulow family Plantation House once stood.

The foundations of the Bulow Plantation House

In 1821, Charles Wilhelm Bulow bought the rights to an extensive tract of land in eastern Florida. At 9000 acres, it is believed to have been the largest property in the state, and the 2200 acre Bulow Plantation was its crown jewel.

Bulow Creek

Unfortunately, Charles died less than 18 months later, leaving the task of completing the transformation of this wild land into a number of plantations, including Bulow itself, to his son, John Joachim.

One of Bulow’s current residents

Another local

In reality, that’s not quite true. Sadly, this was the time of slavery, and the back-breaking physical work of creating a farmable plantation at Bulow from the thick bush and swamps actually fell to between 300 and 400 slaves. As you walk from where the Plantation House once stood, you pass subtle shapes concealed in the needle-strewn forest floor, which mark out the slaves’ houses.

The path beside the slave houses

During its heyday, Bulow Plantation produced copious quantities of sugar cane, cotton, rice and indigo. At the heart of the plantation’s working life, was the massive sugar mill, built of local coquina, a stone comprised of crushed shells. Here the cane would be processed into refined sugar and molasses.

Approaching the sugar mill ruins

The chimneys above the fires that used to fuel the refining process

The furnace opening is still clearly visible

Each of the kettles in this picture contained a different product of the sugar refining process

However, although prosperous, the Bulow’s tenure in this area was destined to be short-lived. In 1836, the Second Seminole War swept through the area and Bulow Plantation was destroyed, along with many others.

Wagons loaded with sugar and molasses once exited the mill through these doors

Today, all that really remains are the ruins of the sugar mill, which give the State Park its name. They stand as a testament, not only to the strength with which they were built, but also to this important, if difficult and fleeting, episode in Florida’s history.

Trees and Buildings

This post was inspired by Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge, which this week is Buildings and Trees, Jennifer’s One Word Photo Challenge, which is Appliance (OK, so calling a sugar mill an ‘appliance’ might be stretching it, but it’s all fun, right?), and of course Jo’s Monday Walk.

Me at the sugar mill ruins

If you’re the sort of person that loves experiencing the beauty of nature combined with a bit of technology on your travels, why not sign up and follow my continuing Journeys here at Jaspa’s Journal (on WordPress or Bloglovin’), or through my website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr?

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